Thursday, December 15, 2011

New Zealand's National Aquarium in Napier has announced its new free digital tours being launched today. The tours make use of new technologies, including QR codes and smart devices.

Upon arriving at the National Aquarium, visitors can scan a QR code on their smartphone or tablet and they will then be able to connect to the aquarium's Wi-Fi and go on a digital tour of the facility.

“If you have an iPhone and your Wi-Fi is turned on, on arrival you’ll get a ‘welcome to the Aquarium’ message with ‘check out our free digital tours?’ Then just click on either video or audio tours and away you go," said the National Aquarium's manager, Rob Yarrall.“Visitors get to be their own virtual tour guides. They will be given a unique look into the lives of the animals through 90-second videos, watched through free Wi-Fi on hand-held devices. The videos will show footage of feeding or other habitual behaviour that they may not get to see during their visit.”

The QR codes can also be scanned prior to arrival by visiting the aquarium's website. For those people who do not have smart devices, an audio tour is available on a pre-loaded mp3 player that can be bought on-site, or the tour can be downloaded from the aquarium's website.